Northern Food Security: The Greenhouse Solution
Presenters’ Biographies
Karen Tanino
Karen Tanino is an Associate Professor in the Dept. Plant Sciences,
College of Agriculture and Bioresources, University of Saskatchewan and
is currently chair of the Northern Agriculture Thematic Network under
University of the Arctic. She has studied/worked in the area of low
temperature stress for 20 years. She specializes in plant abiotic stress
physiology and teaches the graduate level course PLSC 865.3 Plant
Abiotic Stress, which is being re-formatted to deliver through real time
video conferencing to other countries. In the past 6 years alone, she has
published 27 contributions, 23 conference presentations, has edited/coedited 3 books on plant abiotic stress and has been invited to edit a
volume in CABI’s series on Climate Change: Cold Adaptation and Climate
Change. In addition, together with Gerry Ivanochko (Ministry of Agriculture, Government of
Saskatchewan), they have developed the most extensive baseline data globally available for
wild mushroom productivity in the northern boreal forest.
Brian Hunt
Brian Hunt is currently the Greenhouse and Alternative Crops Business Development Specialist
with Manitoba Agriculture, Food, and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI) located the Crops Knowledge
Centre in Carman, Manitoba.
Brian was born and raised on the black soils of glacial Lake Agassiz in Manitoba. He graduated
from the University of Winnipeg with a B.Sc. in Physical Geography and Environmental Studies.
After a brief working and travelling hiatus Brian returned to the U of M to complete a course of
study in Agriculture. Through his career he has worked as an agronomist in both the public and
private sectors throughout Western Canada.
He joined MAFRI as a permanent employee in August of 2006 and is committed to sustainable
agriculture in the north, south, east and west. Brian has worked in all the major soil zones of
western Canada but returned to Manitoba cause there is no place like “loam”.
Ellen Avard
After having completed a bachelor in Environmental Studies (BES) at
York University in 2000, Ellen Avard worked for a number of years in
the forestry and mining industries. In 2008, after having worked in a
greenhouse on an organic farm, she returned to school to undertake a
master’s degree in Geography at Université Laval. It was at this time
that she began to study the potential for greenhouses in Nunavik. She
is currently in the third year of her doctoral studies – still in geography
at Université Laval – and is continuing to work on the development of
greenhouse-based local food systems in the North.
Dawn Charlie
Dawn has lived in the north for a very long time moving up from Ontario as a young adult to
escape a bleak looking future in downtown Toronto. She is descended from an English father
and a Commanche, Cherokee, English, German mother from Texas. She met and married a
world famous Northern Tuchone Dog Musher, Wilfred Charlie and settled down in the
Carmacks, Yukon area. Her father was an Agriculturalist who worked for the Federal
Government. He came north and helped set up an agricultural program for a communal school
in Carcross, Yukon. Being a part of a small First Nation community for so many years has given
her the opportunity to observe and be a part of the transition from semi traditional on the land
life to the modern consumer driven life of today. Working as a researcher for the
Implementation Department of the Little Salmon, Carmacks First Nation, Dawn had the
opportunity to apply for funding for projects which would benefit the First Nation people here.
She realized that the little community was not very sustainable and seeing how her garden and
greenhouse so helped her feed her family, that in this time in history when all sorts of things
could separate us from food from the south that it would be a good time for the community to
become more sustainable and feed themselves more. She researched information on
greenhouses and gardening and started writing proposals for funding partners to help lead her
community into becoming more sustainable. Funding did start to come in and we were able to
move forward to where we are now…..a bit more independent and self sustaining than we
were 10 years ago.
Today the Little Salmon, Carmacks First Nation has a large 135 foot greenhouse, gardens, and
potato fields. This operation supplies a lot of organic vegetables to the whole community and
has done for over 10 years. It does not make a profit but does well in supplying healthy food
and supporting social programs in the small community of Carmacks and has started the ball
rolling in other northern communities. Our farming venture has been ongoing for over 10 years
now and has gathered a lot of media and has been a blessing to our community. Dawn herself is
now an official elder and is semi retired and still plants a greenhouse, raised garden beds and a
field of potatoes.
Sara Holzman
Sara Holzman holds a Master of Science in Rural
Planning and Development from the University of
Guelph and a Bachelor of Environmental Studies
from the University of Waterloo. Her Masters’
research focused on establishing a model of success
for community greenhouses in Nunavut and took
her to Iqaluit NU and Inuvik NWT to conduct case
studies. Sara has spent more than two years living
in Nunavut working on environmental issues. Sara
is an active member of the Iqlauit Community
Greenhouse Society and loves filling her plot with
salad greens.
Joe Munroe
Joe Munroe is the founding first president of
Muskoday Organic Growers Coop in Muskoday
First Nation Indian Reserve, Treaty 6 Cree
territory, Canada. He was educated by his Cree
Elders and the Universities of Saskatchewan,
University of Regina, and Trinity Western
University, and the International Agroecology
Shortcourse at UC-Santa Cruz, California. His
areas of study have been Agriculture and
Economics, Law, Education, Aviation and Arts and Sciences. His various employment positions
include: Business Development and Management, Government, First Nations Economic and
Social Development, Restorative Justice for Tribal Council, and law enforcement. His most
recent position has been Indigenous Peoples Field Coordinator for Heifer Project International –
Canada. His work has there has included Indigenous Peoples food sovereignty and reclamation
of Indigenous Foods and Food systems by Indigenous people.
Carol Sanofsky
Carol has lived in Wabowden, Manitoba her entire life.
She is the oldest of 8 children in her family. She retired
from Canada Post four years ago, where she worked for
30 years. She is married for 43 years with 2 children, 2
grandchildren and recently 1 great grandchild.
Carol has been gardening for the majority of her life,
gardened with her mother, then took over the garden.
She established her own garden and built a small
greenhouse to prolong the growing season for her
cucumbers and tomatoes. (Our weather drops down to
below 40 degrees.)
She has helped establish the school greenhouse and was
a volunteer worker along with her Mom, sharing their knowledge with the school children. She
is now using her grandson as a helper in the garden and greenhouse, (teaching him how to
garden) little does he know it.
Carol has the knowledge of Hunting, Trapping, Fishing and collecting edible plants and
medicines from the forest. Carol’s father was a Trapper and Commercial Fisherman, so Carol
accompanied him on the majority of his excursions. The family had to live off of the land, so to
speak.
Carol started working on a part-time basis for Bayline Regional Roundtable (BRRT) approx. 4
years ago as an Ag Tech and as of May 2012, works full-time as a Garden Advisor/Admin Asst.
Tom Allen
Thomas J. Allen (Tom) is currently an associate
professor in the College of Agriculture and
Bioresources. In addition he is both the CIBC
Chair in Agricultural Entrepreneurship in the
College of Agriculture and Bioresources and a
Wilson Scholar in Entrepreneurship in the
Edwards School of Business. Tom has 20 years of
experience as a teacher of agricultural business
and entrepreneurship and 20 years of experience
as a farmer. Over the years he has taught courses
in the diploma, undergraduate and graduate programs in the College of Agriculture, and in the
undergraduate and MBA programs in Edwards School of Business. Tom served for numerous
years as Special Advisor to the Dean of Agriculture on matters concerning First Nation Peoples
and First Nation economic activity. In 2008 he assumed the role of pillar leader in the
Indigenous Land Management Institute with a special emphasis on wealth creation in
Indigenous communities. Tom was a commitment leader in the University of Saskatchewan’s
second integrated planning process focusing on Aboriginal Engagement. Tom is currently on
sabbatical leave during which time he is studying the economic feasibility of northern vegetable
production using biomass as a heat source.
Michael Keefer
Michael is a recognised subject expert in plant science with specialisation
in plant ecology, native plant horticulture, ecological restoration, and
ethnobotany. Along with his skills in the plant world he is a green
entrepreneur, and is the president Tipi Mountain Native Plants Ltd.
(TMNP), Tipi Mountain Eco-Cultural Services Ltd. (TMECS)
tipimountain.com and Keefer Ecological Services Ltd (KES)
www.keefereco.com, three closely related businesses. The main office of
these companies is a green building in rural Cranbrook. KES is the leading
consulting firm in the Kootenays for native plant based reclamation, rare
plant recovery work, ecological restoration and ethnobotany. KES services
include: ecological research, native seed collections, revegetation prescription writing, planting
logistics, environmental assessment and monitoring, scientific monitoring of plantation survival,
invasive plant management, ethnobotany, technical review and writing and other related
services. TMNP is the Kootenay’s only full service native plant nursery, the business propagates
over 80 species of indigenous plants for ecological restoration, landscaping and other uses in
over 24,000 sq/ft of greenhouses. As a volunteer, Michael is the Co-Chair of the BC Society for
Ecological Restoration and a director of the East Kootenay Invasive Plant Council. He is an
Adjunct Professor at the Centre for Livelihoods and Ecology at Royal Roads University.
Tang Lee
Tang Lee is an architect who designs healthy and sustainable
buildings beginning with his first solar heated building in 1975.
He teaches architecture, building science, indoor air quality,
sustainable design, as well as mechanical and civil engineering at
several universities in Canada and abroad, and is a Professor at
the University of Calgary. He is on several committees of Health
Canada, National Research Council of Canada, National Building
Code of Canada, and Canadian Standards Association. Tang Lee
is also fish farmer raising tropical fish for consumption and
where the wastewater is used in a hydroponics greenhouse.
Joey Villeneuve
Joey Villeneuve has a Master’s degree in greenhouse microclimate
analysis and has worked on several projects regarding greenhouse
cooling, heating, CO2 injection, humidity control, ventilation and
equipment sizing. Joey Villeneuve also has developed skills in biomass
heating systems by working on forestry and agriculture fuel sources,
harvesting equipment, natural drying processes as well as combustion
equipment in regards to emissions and pollution control. Joey Villeneuve
is presently working as research engineer at both University Laval and
Agriculture Canada. Joey Villeneuve also offers greenhouse engineering
services with Environnement-MJ inc. and has recently worked on a Northern greenhouse design
project for the Kativik regional government in Salluit. Joey Villeneuve has also worked on
several innovative R&D projects aimed at improving commercial greenhouses such as
harvesting equipment, energy efficiency technologies, composting and waste management, etc.
Mike Dixon
Mike Dixon is a Professor in the School of Environmental Sciences and
Director of the Controlled Environment Systems Research Facility (CESRF),
University of Guelph. He served as Chair of the Department of
Environmental Biology from 2003-2008. Dr. Dixon joined the University in
1985 as a NSERC University Research Fellow after earning his PhD from
Edinburgh University in Scotland and holding a post-doctoral position at
the University of Toronto.
As project leader for the Canadian research team investigating the
contributions of plants to life support in space, Dr. Dixon formed the Space
and Advanced Life Support Agriculture (SALSA) program at the University
of Guelph. This program currently represents Canada’s prime contribution
to the international space science objectives in life support and the Controlled Environment Systems
Research Facility (CESRF) currently leads the world in technology developments and research
dedicated to studying plant and microbial interactions in life support systems proposed for human
space exploration.
Dr. Dixon is also the project leader for the research team at Guelph investigating the biofiltration of
indoor air as a method of alleviating what is commonly known as “sick building syndrome”.
Off campus he is the Technical Exchange Coordinator for the International Advanced Life
Support Working Group (IALSWG) which is a strategic planning group coordinating information
and personnel exchanges among international space agencies such as CSA (Canadian), NASA
American), ESA (European), RSA (Russian) and JAXA (Japanese). He also has served 2 terms as
Chair of the Space Exploration Advisory Committee of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), sat on
their Senior Space Science Advisory Committee and is a member of the Life Sciences and
Technical Committee of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Meriam Karlsson
Meriam Karlsson is Professor of Horticulture in the School of Natural
Resources and Agricultural Sciences at the University of Alaska
Fairbanks. Her research and teaching activities are in environmental
plant physiology with emphasis on practical applications for commercial
horticulture under high latitude conditions. Special attention is placed
on understanding relationships of temperature, light and environmental
conditions for plant and crop growth, development and productivity.
Guidelines and protocols are developed to support and improve
efficient crop production in field, high tunnel-, greenhouse, and other
modified controlled environments.
Murray Guy
Murray is the President and CEO of Integrated Designs Inc., which
he founded in 1997. It is a company that specializes in Lean
Project Delivery and Sustainable Business Development. With
expertise in Sustainability, Building Science, Project Management,
Integrated Project Delivery, High Performance Design and
Commissioning, IDI has developed the expertise to achieve high
levels of building performance and a more sustainable building
industry.
Having spent 10 years as a controls engineer and another 15
years working on high performance buildings as an owner and as a consultant, Murray has
developed an understanding of the importance of delivering performance from different
perspectives. This has helped his organization to develop services that create value and
enhance project delivery effectiveness enabling all stakeholders to be successful.
As a Business Owner, Murray is committed to developing a successful high performance
company. IDI is well on the way to achieving this goal by developing “best practice” project
delivery systems and by creating a high involvement collaborative learning organization that
attracts and retains the best talent.
Murray is also a firm believer that high performance only comes from people that take the time
to enjoy life and keep healthy. IDI places a high priority on personal adventure and family time.
Murray needs to lead by example and so takes the time to spend with his wife of thirty years
and three kids traveling, camping, practicing yoga, mountain biking, snow boarding and
windsurfing.
Murray is also an excellent presenter that has a unique presentation style that always includes
good stories and principles that relate success and business to windsurfing.
David Arkell
David Arkell is the President & CEO of 360 Energy Inc. With over 20
years experience in the energy business, David has lead his
team at 360 Energy from its humble beginnings in 1995 to where it
stands today, as one of Canada's leading energy consultants.
360 Energy has developed 3 flag-ship products that aim to capture
world-wide best practices in a format that can be easily deployed.
These programs identify and engage people across multiple
departments, from accounting to maintenance, and at different
levels, from the plant floor to the boardroom. The partnerships
created allow leading utilities and companies to focus on building
a sustainable and effective energy management culture.
Glen Sweetman
Glen Sweetman has been the Greenhouse and Nursery Crop
Provincial Specialist for the Ministry of Agriculture for 15 years. His
role is to assist producers with production, diagnostics and technical
transfer of information in order to develop and expand the
greenhouse and nursery industries.
Xiuming Hao
Dr. Xiuming Hao is a research scientist with AAFC at the
Greenhouse and Processing Crops Research Centre
(GPCRC) in Harrow, Ontario. He holds a PhD in plant
physiology from University of Guelph and an MSc in
computer control systems from Wayne State University.
Dr. Hao has been involved in the greenhouse research at
the GRCRC since 1995. The focus of his research program
is on greenhouse environmental physiology and energy
conservation. In the last 9 years, he has conducted
numerous projects on year-round greenhouse vegetable
production with supplemental lighting, and on improving energy efficiency including new
greenhouse insulation technology with liquid foam, heat placement in greenhouse vegetable
production on raised-troughs, and dynamic greenhouse climate control. Dr. Hao has led the
AAFC national research project on dynamic plant-based environment control to improve energy
use efficiency in greenhouse vegetable production. He also conducted climate control research
to improve energy efficiency and crop quality for ornamental crops.